Page 11 of Lightness In My Dark

Kye slapped Finn on the leg. “A club?” He turned to me. “Finn doesn’t do clubs. Strictly a bar man.” He directed his question to Finn. “What were you doing at a club?”

I waited for him to lead. “I took a client there. He wanted to go dancing. Trust me, I didn’t want to be there.” He paused before continuing, “I wanted to head home and watch a game. Instead, I had to entertain and babysit a client. I figured I’d have a drink or two and get lucky.”

“And?” Kye wanted the entire story.

Finn took a sip of his beer, which I assumed meant for me to take over. “I walked by Finn, tripped on the rug, and of course, grabbed onto something to stop from falling.”

Finn laughed and gave me a tight smile. “Yeah, my crotch.”

My face fired up from anger and embarrassment. I rolled my eyes, snorted, and said, “He wishes.” Kye laughed as I continued, giving Finn a tight, fake smile. “I grabbed his starched ironed pants cuff and tore it. I would have liked to have seen the look on his face, but I was getting up with the help of a gentleman from a nearby table. Not Finn.”

“Because I couldn’t get off the stool since you still had a hold of my pants.”

Kye said, “My guess is the tear in your pants pissed you off.”

“Yeah, at first.” Finn met my eyes and said with a softness in his tone. “But she stood next to me, apologizing profusely for what she did, offering to buy me a drink. Her eyes, the dimple that crept up when I agreed, her soft hand on my shoulder.” He paused and then grinned. “Made me realize I was getting lucky that evening.” Kye and Finn whooped, high fived, and laughed at the response.

Their immature behavior had me excusing myself. Outside his office was a small sitting area looking out into the backyard where I sat. There, I swallowed my tears before they could appear. It shouldn’t have surprised me he said those things. My first meeting with him went about the same way.

Can I endure his vulgarity and belittling for three years? Is ten million worth it? Maybe my insecurities are making me too sensitive.

Grabbing a tissue off the table, I blew my nose, tossed it in the garbage, and slid my fingers through my hair.

Yeah, you can handle it. You’ll need to step up your game. Find moments where you can stick it to him. This whole situation is already tough. Don’t let it drag you down. You’ve been through worse times and got through them. Keep your head down, listen, and when you can, leave a mark.

Cole approached and escorted me to the table. I offered to help set it, but he declined and then soon after Kye and Finn appeared.

Finn and Kye laughed at their stories. I only half-listened, moving food around my plate. I sensed Kye’s eyes on me. At first, I assumed I was being paranoid, except every time I looked up, he held a steady gaze.

While he cut into his steak, he asked, “It’s weird how out of the blue you’re engaged. We share everything.” He winked at me, and a chill ran down my spine.

Finn put his napkin down on the table. “Wren worked full time and did volunteer work during her spare time. In the beginning, we didn’t see each other often between our jobs and such. We weren’t sure where the relationship was going, but once we wanted to be together, things snowballed from there.”

With a mouthful, Kye asked, “Yeah, but she hasn’t been around.”

“What spare time we had, we wanted to spend together.” He looked over at me with a crooked smile and I returned it. “It wasn’t long after that when I proposed.”

Before Kye had anymore interrogating questions, I turned the tables, and asked him about his job and how they met.

“I’m between jobs.”

Finn scoffed at his comment. “For as long as I’ve known you, you haven’t had a job.”

“Correct. I’m between jobs.” He responded to me. “I enjoy keeping my options open. Thank God I have a trust fund to allow for such… downtime.” He tossed the napkin on the table and patted his stomach. “Finn and I met in college. I think we were twenty.” A sinister grin slithered on his face. “I don’t know how much Finn has told you about his past, but he was a ladies’ man. Both of us were. Of course, none of the women meant much to us. We were sowing our oats. Let’s say we didn’t care who the women belonged to.”

I cleared my throat. “And now? Have you found anyone special?”

His eyes seared into me. “Nope. I’m still in the sharing stage.”

Finn piped in. “Wren’s off limits, Kye. She’smyfiancé.”

He tipped back his chair and, with a sneer, said, “Okay. But I’m always willing to take her for a test-run for you.”

“Fucking quit.”

I couldn’t stay anymore and excused myself. He grossed me out. In my room, I sat on the window seat, hugging my knees to my chest, and using my feet to rock back and forth. A habit I acquired. Although an introvert, even I knew this environment might swallow me up and spit me out. Separated from comfort, Finn’s attitude made me feel unwelcome. And I was. This was all about a proposition, nothing more or less. Yet the tears wouldn’t stop drifting down my cheeks, and I hated myself for exposing my emotions. I needed to rein them in and remain indifferent as much as possible.

A double knock on my door, and Finn cracked it open and entered. I rolled my head toward the window, rubbing my cheek with my shoulder. Finn sat on the other side of the seat. He watched me. Thankful he didn’t mention my crying, he extended his hand to give me a small box.

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